Flanagan dethrones Keitany, ends drought for U.S. women

Kenya’s Kamworor wins; Schar upsets McFadden

NEW YORK — Shalane Flanagan thought about the seven years building to this race, possibly her last. She thought about the running star striding next to her. She thought about her family. She thought about Meb.

With one hellacious holler at the finish, it all poured out.

Flanagan dethroned Mary Keitany on Sunday and became the first American woman to win the New York City Marathon since 1977, potentially ending her decorated career with her first major marathon victory.

Flanagan’s breakthrough came in the last career race for American great Meb Keflezighi. The 2009 New York winner collapsed at the finish line, his 42- year- old body pushed to its limit in his 26th marathon. Keflezighi finished 11th, about five minutes behind the 24-year-old winner, Geoffrey Kamworor of Kenya.

This might have been Flanagan’s final race, too, although the four-time Olympian wasn’t ready to commit. But she likes the idea of her and Keflezighi going out together.

“I was thinking of Meb, and I was thinking of how I wanted to make him proud,” Flanagan said.

The wheelchair events were a Swiss sweep. Manuela Schar finally upended four-time defending champion Tatyana McFadden of Clarksville to win the women’s race, while countryman Marcel Hug repeated as the men’s champ. Schar had been runner-up the past three years but beat her nemesis, McFadden, by nearly three minutes. Hug has won New York three times.

Early in the 2017 season, McFadden, an Atholton alumna, suffered severe blood clots in her legs that led to repeated hospital visits and surgeries. She missed the Tokyo and London marathons, breaking her string of 16 consecutive wins in majors, before returning to win her seventh straight Chicago Marathon early last month. But strong headwinds on Sunday made New York a sterner test.

“It was a tough race today. Manuela is Flanagan looking really strong,” McFadden said in a story on teamusa.org. “I am proud of myself getting second. I had a great run in Chicago; [the course] being a little flatter there was good. It’s been a tough year for me, I missed all of the base training in the winter. I’m really looking forward to this winter kind of getting stronger, being in the gym more.”

Schar finished in 1:48:09, nearly three minutes ahead of McFadden, who with 17 Paralympic medals over five Paralympic Games (summer and winter) is one of the most dominant wheelchair racers of all time.

“It’s scary coming back, being on such high doses of blood thinners, with my blood levels going up and down all the time,” McFadden said. “Manuela is a very strong competitor; she’s been training really hard. We tried to keep up, I caught her on Verrazano [Bridge, between Brooklyn and Staten Island] all the way up, but she was too good today. I’m looking forward to next year.”

The race came five days after the bike path terror attack in lower Manhattan killed eight and raised questions about security for Sunday. That hit home for Flanagan, a Massachusetts native who completed the 2013 Boston Marathon shortly before a bomb went off at the finish line, killing three and wounding more than 260 others.

“It’s been a tough week for New Yorkers, and a tough week for our nation,” Flanagan said. “I thought of, ‘What a better gift than to make Americans smile today?’ ”

Flanagan ended a dominant stretch in New York by Keitany, a Kenyan runner who had won here three straight years. Flanagan stalked Keitany most of the way, hovering behind her during an unusually slow first 20 miles by the lead women.

Flanagan, Keitany and third-place finisher Mamitu Daska of Ethiopia broke from the pack in the 21st mile, and with about three miles left, Flanagan hit the jets. She finished in 2 hours, 26 minutes, 53 seconds, about a minute faster than Keitany.

Flanagan cried and yelled as she approached the finish line without another runner in sight.

“It’s indescribable,” the 36-year-old said. “It’s a moment I’m trying to soak up and savor.”

The last American woman to win New York was Miki Gorman, who did it in 1976 and 1977.

“Way too long,” Flanagan said.